Uncork Capital

Uncork Capital is one of Silicon Valley’s most enduring seed firms — and a founder’s most trusted guide.

ActiveVenture Capital

Updated: Mar 14, 2026 ·

About

Uncork Capital is an established seed-stage venture firm operating from San Francisco, California. Recognized for its enduring presence in Silicon Valley, the firm serves as a trusted guide for founders, specializing in early-stage investments.

The firm's strategy involves committing capital early, actively assisting with the challenges of company building, and fostering long-term partnerships. With over two decades of experience since its founding in 2004, Uncork Capital has supported more than 275 ventures, contributing to over 100 market-shaping outcomes.

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Investments Made

Date	Company	Round	Lead Investor(s)	Co-Investor(s)
Feb 11, 2026	Inertia	$450.0M Series A	Bessemer Venture Partners	Google Ventures, IQT, Long Journey Ventures, Modern Capital, Neo, Threshold, WndrCo
Oct 1, 2025	Basis Theory	$33.0M Series B	—	C2 Investment, Costanoa Ventures
Sep 1, 2025	Summation	$21.0M Series A	—	Balderton Capital, Benchmark, Gradient Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Magma Partners, Tribe Capital, Alexandre Prot, Didier Valet, Guillaume Princen, Nate Matherson, Tom Blomfield
Sep 1, 2025	Numeral	$35.0M Series B	—	Balderton Capital, Battery Ventures, Benchmark, Gradient Ventures, Magma Partners, Redpoint Ventures, Tribe Capital, Alexandre Prot, Didier Valet, Guillaume Princen, Nate Matherson, Tom Blomfield
Sep 1, 2025	DroneDeploy	$15.0M Venture Round	—	AngelPad, Bessemer Venture Partners, Emergence Capital, High Alpha, Scale Venture Partners, The General Partnership, XYZ Venture Capital
Sep 1, 2025	Phases	$500K Seed	—	Antler, Brand Foundry Ventures, Conviction Partners, Jenny Fielding, Scott Hartley, IrishAngels, Motivate Ventures, Pelion Venture Partners, Rev1 Ventures, Scale Asia Ventures, Y Combinator, Chris Smoak, Tom Blomfield
Sep 1, 2025	Anything	$11.0M Series A	—	Bessemer Venture Partners, CRV, Flex Capital, Footwork, Stellar Capital, Adam D'Angelo, Ben Tossell, Mathilde Collin, Tobias Lutke, Travis May
Sep 1, 2025	Modal Labs	$87.0M Series B	—	8VC, Amplify Partners, BoxGroup, Contrary Capital, Essence VC, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Giant Ventures, Innovation Endeavors, Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, M12, Menlo Ventures, Pareto Holdings, Redpoint Ventures, Red Swan Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Susquehanna Capital, Thrive Capital, Allison Pickens (Allison Pickens Ventures), Bradley Horowitz, Chafic Kazoun, Nkechi Iregbulem, Quinn Slack, Scott Belsky, Teddy Citrin
Sep 1, 2025	Rainforest	$29.0M Series B	—	Accel, CRV, Flex Capital, Heavybit, Infinity Ventures, Matrix, TenOneTen Ventures, Chris McKillop, George Kurtz
Sep 1, 2025	Summation	$12.0M Seed	—	Balderton Capital, Benchmark, Gradient Ventures, Magma Partners, Tribe Capital, Alexandre Prot, Didier Valet, Guillaume Princen, Nate Matherson, Tom Blomfield
Aug 1, 2025	Anything	$6.0M Seed	—	Bessemer Venture Partners, Footwork, Sherpalo Ventures, Ben Tossell, Mathilde Collin, Tobias Lutke
Aug 1, 2025	Firecrawl	$15.0M Series A	—	Bessemer Venture Partners, Footwork, Nexus Venture Partners, Abhinav Asthana, Ben Tossell, Mathilde Collin, Tobias Lutke
Jul 1, 2025	AirGarage	$23.0M Series B	—	Abstract Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, DCM, Felicis Ventures, Floodgate, Forerunner Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, Maniv Mobility, Next47, Scribble Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Seven Seven Six, Thrive Capital, Toyota Ventures, Two Sigma Ventures, Austin Ogilvie, Chris Bennett, Dylan Field, Jacob Kerzner, Justin Mateen, Prescott Watson, Sri Batchu
Jul 1, 2025	PlayerZero	$5.0M Seed	—	645 Ventures, 8VC, Abstract Ventures, Bennett Siegel, Kevin Hartz, Adverb Ventures, Alchemy Ventures, Alt Capital, Ben Taft's Genius Ventures, Citi Ventures, Craft Ventures, DFJ, DST Global, Expa, Felicis Ventures, First Round Capital, Forerunner Ventures, Foundation Capital, Foundry Group, Fuel Capital, Green Bay Ventures, Greylock, High Alpha, Intel Capital, LGF, Liquid 2 Ventures, Maniv Mobility, Matrix, Maverick Capital, Nyca Partners, Radical Ventures, Scribble Ventures, Seven Seven Six, SignalFire, South Park Commons, SV Angel, Thayer Ventures, Thrive Capital, Toyota Ventures, Two Sigma Ventures, Underscore VC, Weekend Fund, WndrCo LLC, Y Combinator, Amjad Masad, Austin Ogilvie, Chris Bennett, Daniel Kan, Deborah Liu, DJ Patil, Drew Houston, Dylan Field, Eric Futoran, Evan Moore, Fidji Simo, Guillaume Luccisano, Guillermo Rauch, Howie Liu, Jacob Kerzner, Jason Kay, Justin Mateen, Kevin Lin, Marc Benioff, Mark Pincus, Mike Abbott, Mike Liu, Mike Vernal, Nate Matherson, Nitay Joffe, Prescott Watson, Quinn Slack, Shishir Mehrotra, Stewart Butterfield, Tobias Lutke, Yan-David Erlich
Jul 1, 2025	Lovable	$200.0M Series A	—	Accel, byFounders, Creandum, CRV, Flex Capital, Heavybit, Hummingbird Ventures, La Famiglia, Operator Collective, Pareto Holdings, RTP Global, TenOneTen Ventures, Adam D'Angelo, Ben Tossell, Charlie Songhurst, Chris McKillop, Christian Reber, Dharmesh Shah, Fredrik Hjelm, George Kurtz, Job Van Der Voort, Melissa Tan, Robert Muñoz, Stefan Lindeberg, Stewart Butterfield
Jun 1, 2025	Talon.One	$130.0M Venture Round	—	Accel, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, CRV, Flex Capital, Heavybit, Helium-3 Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Matrix, Meritech Capital Partners, Silversmith Capital Partners, Square Peg Capital, TenOneTen Ventures, Chris McKillop, George Kurtz, Matt Bellamy
Jun 1, 2025	Levelpath	$55.0M Series B	—	Adapt Ventures, AirAngels, Alumni Ventures, Authentic Ventures, Battery Ventures, Benchmark, BoxGroup, Browder Capital, Capital Factory, CapitalX, Fifth Wall, Foundation Capital, Infinite Niches, Kepler Operator’s Fund, NextView Ventures, Not Boring Capital, Offline Ventures, Paradox Capital, Pareto Holdings, Predictive VC, Redpoint Ventures, SRB Ventures, Thirty Five Ventures, Weekend Fund, Adam Guild, Akshay Kothari, Arash Ferdowsi, Cory Levy, Priyank Chandra, Quinn Slack, Rich Miner, Scot Wingo, Siqi Chen, Suhail Doshi
Jun 1, 2025	Koobz	$7.0M Seed	—	Alumni Ventures, ENIAC Ventures, Indicator Ventures, Preface Ventures, Alain Hanover
Jun 1, 2025	Amperos Health	$4.0M Seed	—	AirAngels, Benchmark, Weekend Fund, Akshay Kothari, Arash Ferdowsi, Siqi Chen, Suhail Doshi
Jun 1, 2025	Definely	$30.0M Series B	—	Adapt Ventures, Alumni Ventures, Authentic Ventures, BoxGroup, Browder Capital, Capital Factory, CapitalX, Fifth Wall, Foundation Capital, Infinite Niches, Kepler Operator’s Fund, NextView Ventures, Not Boring Capital, Octopus Ventures, Offline Ventures, Paradox Capital, Pareto Holdings, Predictive VC, Raine Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, SRB Ventures, Systemiq Capital, Thirty Five Ventures, Adam Guild, Claire Hughes Johnson, Cory Levy, Priyank Chandra, Quinn Slack, Rich Miner, Scot Wingo
May 1, 2025	Wander	$50.0M Series B	—	Adapt Ventures, Alt Capital, Alumni Ventures, Authentic Ventures, BoxGroup, Browder Capital, Capital Factory, CapitalX, Clear Ventures, Fifth Wall, Foundation Capital, Founders Fund, FPV Fund, FTX Ventures, Infinite Niches, Kepler Operator’s Fund, Meritech Capital Partners, Mischief Venture Capital, NextView Ventures, Not Boring Capital, Offline Ventures, Paradox Capital, Pareto Holdings, Predictive VC, Prosperity7 Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Saga, SRB Ventures, Summit Partners, TCV, The Hit Forge, Thirty Five Ventures, Trinity Ventures, Adam Guild, Cherian Mathew, Christina Cacioppo, Cory Levy, Dharmesh Shah, Dylan Field, Fidji Simo, Immad Akhund, Jason Lemkin, Jonathan Neman, Joshua Reeves, Julian Shapiro, Justin Mateen, Max Mullen, Parker Conrad, Priyank Chandra, Quinn Slack, Rich Miner, Scott Belsky, Scot Wingo, Sean Rad, Siqi Chen
May 1, 2025	Sanity	$85.0M Series C	—	Accel, Bonfire Ventures, CRV, Flex Capital, Heavybit, ICONIQ Capital, Monochrome Capital, Obvious Ventures, Struck Capital, TenOneTen Ventures, Three Bridges, Threshold Ventures, Adam Gross, Chris McKillop, Christian Bach, Edvard Engesæth, Evan Williams, George Kurtz, Mathias Biilmann Christensen
Apr 1, 2025	Dinari	$13.0M Series A	—	Circle Ventures, Expon Capital, Platanus Ventures, Social Starts
Apr 1, 2025	Exowatt	$35.0M Series A	—	8VC, Abstract Ventures, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Atomic, Bora&Sons, Caffeinated Capital, Cubit Capital, Felicis Ventures, Forerunner Ventures, Founders Fund, Gaingels, General Catalyst, Great Oaks Venture Capital, Hitachi Ventures, iNovia Capital, Maniv Mobility, NightDragon, Scribble Ventures, Seven Seven Six, Softbank Group, Streamlined Ventures, SV Angel, The Hit Forge, Thrive Capital, Toyota Ventures, Trajectory Ventures, Two Sigma Ventures, UpHonest Capital, Walden Catalyst Ventures, Y Combinator, Austin Ogilvie, Chris Bennett, Dylan Field, Elad Gil, Jacob Kerzner, Jeff Bezos, Justin Mateen, Leonardo DiCaprio, Paul Graham, Prescott Watson, Richard Branson, Sam Altman, Thomas Tull
Apr 1, 2025	KLIPY	$1.0M Seed	—	Essence VC, Eunoia Capital Partners, M12, Oak HC/FT, Presto Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Red Swan Ventures, Nkechi Iregbulem, Quinn Slack

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Leadership Team

Key people at Uncork Capital.

Research project - PT (through InSITE Fellowship)

Leadership Team

Key people at Uncork Capital.

Research project - PT (through InSITE Fellowship)

Deep Dive

High-Level Overview

Uncork Capital is a pioneering seed-stage venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley, founded in 2004. Its mission is to back bold, founder-led startups at the earliest stages, providing not only capital but also long-term strategic support. The firm’s investment philosophy centers on identifying outlier founders who leverage technology to solve real-world problems, focusing primarily on sectors such as B2B applications, developer tools, frontier technologies, marketplaces, consumer, and hardware. Uncork Capital typically invests between $1.5 million and $4 million in seed rounds, aiming for meaningful ownership and deep partnerships. Over two decades, it has built a reputation as one of Silicon Valley’s most trusted seed investors, with a portfolio that includes category-defining companies like Postmates, Fitbit, SendGrid, LaunchDarkly, and Tailscale, significantly impacting the startup ecosystem by helping early-stage companies scale and succeed[1][2][3].

Origin Story

Uncork Capital was founded in 2004 by Jeff Clavier, who transitioned from a CTO role in fintech to become one of the earliest seed investors in Silicon Valley. Originally named SoftTech VC, the firm rebranded to Uncork Capital in 2017 to better reflect its mission of “uncorking” potential in startups. Jeff Clavier’s vision was to fill a gap in early-stage funding by providing active support and capital during the critical first 18 months of a startup’s life. Over time, the firm expanded its leadership team to include managing partner Andy McLoughlin and partners Susan Liu, Tripp Jones, and Amy Saper, evolving its focus while maintaining a conviction-led, founder-first approach. The firm has raised multiple funds, including a $225 million seed fund and a $75 million growth fund in 2025, underscoring its growth and sustained commitment to early-stage investing[1][2][4].

Core Differentiators

Unique Investment Model: Focuses on seed-stage investments with meaningful ownership (10-15%) and a long-term partnership approach rather than quick exits or high-volume investing.
Network Strength: Deep connections across Silicon Valley and beyond, enabling portfolio companies to access follow-on capital, talent, and strategic partnerships.
Track Record: Over 275 investments with more than 100 successful outcomes, including high-profile exits and category leaders like Fitbit, Postmates, and LaunchDarkly.
Operating Support: Provides hands-on guidance, strategic advice, and operational support throughout the startup lifecycle, building enduring trust with founders.
Sector Focus: Expertise in B2B SaaS, developer tools, frontier tech (e.g., space infrastructure, AI), marketplaces, and consumer tech, allowing targeted value-add to portfolio companies[1][2][3].

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Uncork Capital rides the wave of increasing importance of seed-stage venture capital in Silicon Valley, a trend driven by the growing complexity and capital needs of early-stage startups. The firm’s timing and approach align with market forces favoring deep, founder-focused support amid a competitive funding environment. By backing frontier technologies and developer-centric tools, Uncork helps shape emerging tech trends such as AI, space infrastructure, and autonomous vehicles. Its influence extends beyond capital, fostering innovation ecosystems by enabling startups to scale efficiently and attract follow-on investments from top-tier venture firms. This positions Uncork as a critical catalyst in the broader tech innovation landscape[1][2][3][6].

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Looking ahead, Uncork Capital is poised to continue its selective, high-conviction seed investing with its latest funds (Uncork VIII and Plus IV) over the next three years. Trends such as AI, automation, and frontier tech will likely shape its portfolio focus, while the firm’s deep operational support and network will remain key competitive advantages. As the startup ecosystem evolves, Uncork’s role as a trusted guide for founders at the earliest stages will likely deepen, potentially expanding its influence into new sectors and geographies. The firm’s enduring commitment to founder partnerships and long-term value creation ties back to its founding ethos of being a founder’s most trusted guide in Silicon Valley[2][3].

Sources

Frequently Asked Questions

How long has Uncork Capital been operating in the venture capital landscape?

Uncork Capital has been active for over 20 years, having been founded in 2004, and has made more than 275 investments during this period.

What kind of ongoing support does Uncork Capital provide to its portfolio companies?

Beyond initial capital, Uncork Capital commits to helping with "the hard stuff" and "sticking around," indicating a hands-on, long-term partnership approach to support founders.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long has Uncork Capital been operating in the venture capital landscape?

Uncork Capital has been active for over 20 years, having been founded in 2004, and has made more than 275 investments during this period.

What kind of ongoing support does Uncork Capital provide to its portfolio companies?

Beyond initial capital, Uncork Capital commits to helping with "the hard stuff" and "sticking around," indicating a hands-on, long-term partnership approach to support founders.

High-Level Overview

Origin Story

Core Differentiators

Unique Investment Model: Focuses on seed-stage investments with meaningful ownership (10-15%) and a long-term partnership approach rather than quick exits or high-volume investing.
Network Strength: Deep connections across Silicon Valley and beyond, enabling portfolio companies to access follow-on capital, talent, and strategic partnerships.
Track Record: Over 275 investments with more than 100 successful outcomes, including high-profile exits and category leaders like Fitbit, Postmates, and LaunchDarkly.
Operating Support: Provides hands-on guidance, strategic advice, and operational support throughout the startup lifecycle, building enduring trust with founders.
Sector Focus: Expertise in B2B SaaS, developer tools, frontier tech (e.g., space infrastructure, AI), marketplaces, and consumer tech, allowing targeted value-add to portfolio companies[1][2][3].